Europees recht - CHAPTER 2 B & C ( uitgebreid) - samenvatting

European Law – Chapter 2 B & C



CHAPTER 2 B&C
THE ACTORS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION INTEGRATION PROCESS
Who are the key players in the European Union?


B. The EU institutions
Each EU institution is structured to perform specific functions in the EU legal order

Article 13 TEU
= different institutions represent a variety of interests and together they seem to promote the interest of
the EU and the citizens and member states. They ensure consistency of the EU.

An institutional framework to promote EU values, advance its objectives, serve its interests, those of
its citizens and those of the Member States, and ensure the consistency, effectiveness and continuity of
its policies and actions.

7 EU institutions
= Can only do what they are allowed to do. They do not have unlimited powers, they must act in good
faith towards each other.
 European Parliament (art 13 TEU)
 Council
 European commission
 Court of justice
 …

o Each institution shall act:
- within the limits of the powers conferred on it in the Treaties...
• These institutions can only act in the power that stands in the Treaties. The Treaties must
confirm the power that the institutions have.
- in sincere cooperation
Next to the institutions also some
 Advisory committees
 Each institution represents a set of multiple interests & institutional balance
f.e. The PA interests the interest of EU citizens
And in the relationship between the institutions it is very important to respect each set of interests




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,European Law – Chapter 2 B & C


− The European Parliament

[see separate document on the European Parliament uploaded on Toledo – also part of
compulsory materials for the examination]

So the European Parliament directly represents European citizens because the European
Parliament is elected by …. The EU parliament represent de EU citizens with respect for their
nationality.

We will see Thursday that the composition of the EU parliament depends on national quota’s.
More members of Germany than Belgium in the Parliament. They represent the EU citizens
with respect for their nationality.

The European Parliament directly represents people because they are directly elected by the
EU citizens. Whereas in the council, they are represented by their governments. This is true.

The council is a legal institution composed of ministers of the EU. They represent the interest
of their government. These governments on national level are accountable to their own
national parliament. So this is a more indirect form of representation of the EU citizens,
because the government represents the interest of the states but they are still accountable
towards their own (national bond?). This is the political crisis in France.

A conflict between parliament and government can lead to a dismiss of the government, it is
more indirect representation of the EU citizens.

What is important from article 10 TEU: European institutions represent directly and indirectly
the EU citizens. So the EU parliament directly represent EU citizens. Council represents
citizens indirectly by way of their governmental, themselves. European council is head of the
government, within each domestic constitutional system democratically accountable as well.

In France for example the president is directly elected, so it is accountable to the French
people. But when it comes to representing the French people on European level it’s about the
French people’s interest in the government.

In other words the EU system is composed of a combination of representation in the EU
parliament (directly elected by European citizens) and indirectly representation based on
national democratic differences leading to dimension of governments and governments on
national level.

Their is a duty for EU institutions to be open, transparent and to maintain an ongoing
dialogue in society. This is for example something the European commission is active in. It
mostly has consultations before it puts EU legislation on the table. These consultations are
open for anybody: you can give your opinion on a proposal of the European Commission. So
the function of the EU institutions is a principle of representative democracy (direct and
indirect) and for this to work it needs to be open from…




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− The European Council

 A concise ID card of the European Council is provided for in Article 15 TEU


 Reminder

Historical evolution, existed de facto very early

‘Member States are represented in the European Council by their Heads of State or
Government [...], themselves democratically accountable either to their national
Parliaments, or to their citizens.’ (Art.10(2) al.2 TUE)


What are the main differences between the European Council and the Council of the European Union?
They are two separate institutions
Art 15 and 16 TEU
The European council is composed of heads of states and governments
The council is composed of the ministers  more administrative
The council has legislative powers, the EU council: political
They both represent the interests of the member states

The Council of the EU has legislative powers, the EU Council hasn’t. the Council of the EU decides by
qualified majority, European Council mostly decides by consensus. The Council of the EU is the
gathering of the ministers and the Eu Council consists of the heads of states.




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EU Council

 Composition


According to Art. 15 (2) TUE:

Next to the heads of states and the government members we have:

- European Council = Heads of State or Government of the Member States + President of the
European Council + President of the Commission
The person who is a president sits next to all the heads of the governments
The function of president is a position that is created to give stability to the EU Council.
 We have 28 heads of government that change all the time of composition that depends on
national politics.

Commission represents the union interests and the reason to bring in the president is to allow him to
understand what is going on in the EU Council and of what the heads of governments are discussing.
It is very important to make the link between the two institutions
 the core of the institution = the heads of states

- Main function
Its main function is to set out political directions and priorities. And that makes sense. In fact, the
EC is composed for 28 of 30 of its members of the leaders of the member states or the heads of
states or of governments, depending on who the state decides to send.
So of course, they will set out political directions and priorities. Areas where they do this
particularly strongly are the areas of economic and social governance or the Common Foreign &
Security Policy. But they also do this in other areas of European defense.

- The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy shall ‘take part in
its work’
The high representative is a member of the commission, but he needs to coordinate the foreign affairs
in the European council. This commissioner is also entitled to be present in the meetings; no full
member.
This high representative has a special role and this reminds us to the history: 3 pillars
 2nd pillar: common foreign and security policy  it still has a important thing in the treaty




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